The next day, Sunny went looking for answers regarding Astral Flare. What she knew of the pony who claimed to be her mother just couldn’t be true. Yes, Astral had tried explaining all of the accusations away, but Sunny needed to hear the truth in an unbiased fashion. So, she sought out a pony whom she knew would give her exactly that: the town historian Archive Amulet. He was a mysterious stallion who mostly kept to himself, reading book after book and attempting to add the entire town’s history to his own personal databanks. But, in Sunny’s opinion at least, he was actually trying to memorize the entire history of everything ever made. He'd even added a Scarlet Wing section to his library, placing them in Equestrian/Maretime Bay lore as their greatest adversaries.
But, even despite his peculiarities, he always treated visitors with kindness and respect. His home was replete with Maretime Bay relics and always fascinated other ponies. There was the Maretime Bay High School pennant from when they won a buckball game with their cross town rivals at Buckington High. There was a medallion awarded to Shorsey McGuff, the brave adventurer pony who became the first Earth Pony to sail away from Maretime and return with new treasures. That had been hundreds of years before, and the treasure had wound up in Archive’s capable hooves. Yet another item of interest was a copy of the first blueprint Canter Logic had ever created. Yes, Archive’s home was a veritable trove of knickknacks, trinkets, and other such emblems of their town’s proud history.
“Come in, come in, Sunny,” the kind, older stallion said as he answered her knock. “What can I do for you?”
“Well…I’m not exactly sure how to ask,” Sunny said honestly.
“That’s alright, my dear. Why don’t we have a seat in my study and have a good, old-fashioned chat?”
So, she followed him through the winding maze of books and other things that populated his dwelling. She had to admit that, as kind and mysterious of a pony as he was…he was an awful housekeeper. Things were strewn about haphazardly in a sort-of cavernous fashion. Tomes stacked atop one another until she was sure that they’d topple over onto her if she took one misstep. Thankfully, Archive was right in front of her, and she trailed his bobbing white tail like it was some type of life support. It felt like forever, but they finally made it into his study, which was another mess of books, papers, and different documents regarding their town’s history.
“Please, sit,” Archive said, gesturing to a comfortable looking futon at the end of the room. After Sunny sat down, he took up residence in a small, squeaky office chair. Placing both hooves on its foreleg rests, he looked deep into her eyes. This made her a little uncomfortable, but she also knew that he needed to do this. Quite simply, he was reading her thoughts…or, at least, so she surmised.
“Tell me,” he said, “what’s troubling you, Sunny? Is it your future rule of this great land of ours…or is it something even deeper than that?”
“Honestly, it’s much deeper. I mean, ruling the nation has me on pins and needles, but…I…well…er…I may have found my mother.”
Archive’s ears pricked up. He and Sunny’s father had been very close friends, and he’d always secretly hoped this would happen. “Interesting,” he said, “most interesting, indeed. Tell me, who might the lucky pony be?”
“That’s…where I’m at a bit of a loss,” she said.
“Oooo…the mystery deepens,” he said.
Sunny smiled at his eagerness. “See, Archive…the thing is…it’s…Astral Flare.”
Archive’s eyes nearly bugged out. “Astral Flare?!” He asked in a voice somewhere between a harsh whisper and a disbelieving buzz. “You mean THE Astral Flare?!”
“Um…yep,” Sunny managed to squeak.
Quick as a flash, Archive whirled around to a bookcase nearby. It was overflowing with the written word, and Sunny wondered how he managed to find anything in its shelves. But, somehow, someway, he was able to come up with a book written all about the criminality that had taken place in Maretime Bay. Flipping it open, he sped through hundreds of pages until he found the section on Astral. Yes, she was accused of so much wrongdoing that an entire section had to be dedicated to her. It was four or five chapters long, detailing the grisly murders and other unspeakable acts Astral had been blamed for.
Archive was shaking. “I…I…I can’t believe this. My old friend Argyle would never…I mean, that is to say, he’d never…I…I…”
“Yeah, that’s pretty much where I’m at, too,” Sunny said. “I want to accept her, and she claims that her accusations are all a big frame job, but…I just…can’t bring myself to do so. I mean, she could have the blood of a lot of innocent ponies on her hooves! Ruling Equestria with that sitting on my shoulders would be a nightmare. I need answers, Archive…and I was hoping you might have some.”
Archive quivered as he turned back to face Sunny. “I…I’m afraid I don’t. Not right now, at least. But, that being said, there’s always something to be said for a little research. Your coronation is this weekend, right after Maretime Bay Day, right?”
Sunny nodded. “Yeah, that’s pretty much it. I’ll be moving to this place called Canterlot and living there for the rest of my life…which, apparently, is gonna be a really, really long time.”
“Yes, yes,” Archive said, “I believe I can come up with some answers for you before then. Just give me a couple of days to flip through my library. Surely, there must be something here that will help either clear Astral’s name…or else put her away entirely.”
“Thanks, Archive,” Sunny said. “I’ll be able to rest easy knowing you’re on the case. I don’t think I’ve ever met anypony who enjoys a good mystery the way you do…well…maybe except for my new friend Zipp, of course.”
“Ah, the white pegasus princess,” Archive said. “You know, she called on me the other day.”
“Really?”
“Yes, indeed,” Archive said. “She mentioned something about wanting to know more about Armored Hoof. But, anyway, I found something for her and she left very satisfied. Hopefully, I’ll do the same for you.”